The Porch, the Popular Hudson Valley Storytelling Series

The Porch has partnered with the historic Rosendale Theatre to bring its popular local storytelling series to the quaint Ulster County town. Inspired by The Moth’s live storytelling events, The Porch gives local Hudson Valley Residents the opportunity to share their true stories (without notes!) with a supportive group of friends and neighbors.

“We’re thrilled to be branching out to other Hudson Valley towns, beginning with Rosendale, which has such a great community supportive of the arts and artistic endeavors,” says Joey Shavelle, who launched The Porch in his current hometown of Red Hook, NY. “The Porch has been such a hit on my side of the River, we’re excited to meet some new storytellers and hear some great new stories on the other side!”

The Porch, launched in the summer of 2015, has since sold out events at local libraries, coﬀee shops, friends’ barns, and even The Spiegeltent, Bard’s popular summer arts venue. Previous storytellers have included writers, musicians, academics, teachers, social workers, andassorted local characters. The charm of such an intimate evening of true stories told in real time — some heartbreaking, some hilarious, all heartwarming — has drawn a loyal following of Red Hook and Rhinebeck residents.

Now, the Porch is interested in hearing from Rosendale residents who might be interested in telling a tale on April 28th. The parameters are: the story has to be true and must be told in 8 minutes or less, without the aid of notes. Six storytellers and one musician (who can tell their story in a song) will be selected; each will receive free admission along with one guest, an oﬃcial Porch storyteller t-shirt, and perhaps an oﬀer of a “courage shot” (usually Bourbon) before they go on stage. Anyone interested should reach out to The Porch at info@theporchstories.com. The Porch also oﬀers personalized story-crafting services — for more details, get in touch.